Cup and Trade: Conscious Purchasing of Coffee and Chocolate
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Campus where you would like to present
Ellensburg
Event Website
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source
Start Date
16-5-2019
End Date
16-5-2019
Abstract
A majority of society starts every morning with a cup of coffee, tea, or even hot chocolate--sitting, sipping, and reflecting on the day ahead or watching the news questioning how on earth society has gotten so bad. Finding the thoughts of the morning leave and the cup empty, we often take that simple cup for granted. Few stop to think where this cup of liquid salvation has come from, whose hands touched it, or the work put into making something so necessary for today’s developed nations. Those of us who purchase coffee (and chocolate) should take time and reflect, instead, on the hands that are producing so much vitality to start the day. As consumers, we should question if these farmers are living a successful life, if they get paid enough, if they are treated fairly at work, and if these farmers’ children have to work to help provide instead of going to school—and of course, how this simple cup of liquid gold is affecting the environment. Fortunately, Fair Trade can help benefit consumer, farmer, and buyer. Too often consumers accept false arguments that Fair Trade products are financially unfeasible and do not fully understanding how ethically and environmentally responsible procuring Fair Trade actually is. We need to be willing enough to investigate where our consumer money is actually going.
Recommended Citation
Bruscas, Vinessa, "Cup and Trade: Conscious Purchasing of Coffee and Chocolate" (2019). Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE). 170.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2019/Oralpres/170
Department/Program
Economics
Slides for SOURCE 2019 presentation Bruscas
Additional Files
Bruscas Cup and Trade SOURCE.pptx (8242 kB)Slides for SOURCE 2019 presentation Bruscas
Cup and Trade: Conscious Purchasing of Coffee and Chocolate
Ellensburg
A majority of society starts every morning with a cup of coffee, tea, or even hot chocolate--sitting, sipping, and reflecting on the day ahead or watching the news questioning how on earth society has gotten so bad. Finding the thoughts of the morning leave and the cup empty, we often take that simple cup for granted. Few stop to think where this cup of liquid salvation has come from, whose hands touched it, or the work put into making something so necessary for today’s developed nations. Those of us who purchase coffee (and chocolate) should take time and reflect, instead, on the hands that are producing so much vitality to start the day. As consumers, we should question if these farmers are living a successful life, if they get paid enough, if they are treated fairly at work, and if these farmers’ children have to work to help provide instead of going to school—and of course, how this simple cup of liquid gold is affecting the environment. Fortunately, Fair Trade can help benefit consumer, farmer, and buyer. Too often consumers accept false arguments that Fair Trade products are financially unfeasible and do not fully understanding how ethically and environmentally responsible procuring Fair Trade actually is. We need to be willing enough to investigate where our consumer money is actually going.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2019/Oralpres/170
Faculty Mentor(s)
Paula Collucci